Jed Lowrie's availability for Opening Day could be in doubt, Mets third baseman frustrated by knee injury

PORT ST. LUCIE – Jed Lowrie could be doubtful for Opening Day after learning he has a capsule sprain in his left knee.

The official diagnosis came three days after the Mets revealed the third baseman’s injury – one the team first referred to as “left knee soreness.”

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"There's no timetable right now,” Lowrie said on being ready by March 28. “Obviously I want to be out there with the guys on Opening Day. We need to make sure that this is right and it doesn't linger."

Lowrie left Mets camp on Thursday to undergo an MRI in New York. The 34-year-old said he received confirmation that there is no major long-term damage to his knee, but has yet to speak with the club about participating in baseball activities.

Jed Lowrie (Kathy Willens / AP)

Manager Mickey Callaway said Lowrie needs about 40 at-bats in spring training to be ready for the regular season. There is still plenty of time for Lowrie to log those at-bats, but it would better serve him to be slotted in Grapefruit League game lineups within the next two weeks.

It’s important to note that Lowrie’s pain has not changed since first sharing his discomfort level on Wednesday. Lowrie said he can tell the pain is there on a day-to-day basis, and it bothers him during baseball-related conditioning as well as physical workouts.

J.D. Davis started in place of Lowrie at third base in the Mets spring opener on Saturday. It’s expected that he and Todd Frazier will platoon at the hot corner until Lowrie recovers.

"It's beyond frustrating,” Lowrie said. “But you deal with situations and I know the guys here, the (physical trainers) here, the training staff here will get me right. I'm confident in that."

The Mets signed the free-agent third baseman to a two-year, $20 million contract on Jan. 16. He ended the 2018 season as an All-Star for the A’s. General manager Brodie Van Wagenen was also Lowrie’s former agent with CAA. New York hoped Lowrie was the final piece in the Mets position-player puzzle.

He had career bests in 2018 with 23 home runs and 99 RBI and hit .267/.353/.448.

During his 11-year big-league career, Lowrie has slashed .262/.335/.414 with 521 runs scored, 259 doubles, 17 triples, 104 home runs, 509 RBI and 438 walks in 1,109 games with the Red Sox, Astros and Athletics.